General Medical issues thread

[RooFlyer]

Got the email today from said local clinic to register for "My Medicare" as primary GP. Understand "continuity of care" but will continue with old mate in town till he retires which will be in the next few years methinks.

Yes, the reason I found out about it was that there was a prompt in the Hotdoc reminder I got for an appointment I have with the GP next Monday.

I can’t see myself using myMedicare but I might do a bit more digging.

 

[Aeryn]

There is no downside to My Medicare, register your main GP and you get benefit of no/smaller gap because they get more govt funding for registered patients, but if you need to go somewhere else you still get the usual rebate.

 

[Pushka]

I have, but it's meaningless where I go. I'm fortunate not to need a doctor very often, so by the time I go back, the Dr I registered with has moved on (rural practice.)

Yes. We pay exactly the same gap as Joe Blow off the street. Maybe that means they are getting double benefit if the government is supplemting them through my registration. Maybe I should cancel.

 

[RooFlyer]

There is no downside to My Medicare, register your main GP and you get benefit of no/smaller gap because they get more govt funding for registered patients, but if you need to go somewhere else you still get the usual rebate.

I can't see that benefit for regular consults, only Telehealth. Their fact sheet says:

Benefits of registering for MyMedicare

Many general practices across Australia have registered in MyMedicare to support them in offering tailored care and services to fit the needs of their regular patients. By registering in MyMedicare, you can benefit from:
• A formalised relationship with your general practice or GP, which has shown to improve health outcomes.
• Longer Medicare Benefit Scheme (MBS) funded telehealth consultations with your GP.
• More regular visits from your GP and better care planning for people living in a residential aged care home. Longer telehealth consultations may be particularly beneficial for people seeking assistance with their mental health, people with a disability, older Australians and people in rural orremote Australia.

https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/2025-10/introducing-mymedicare-fact-sheet_0.pdf

I'm not against it (subject to finding out more), but its benefit for me seems marginal at best.

 

[Aeryn]

All I know is I always had to pay to see my GP she doesn't bulk bill except for kids under 12 and seniors (but only in off peak appointments).

However since allowing them to register me with my Medicare i.e. stipulating that GP is my regular GP I no longer have to pay for short appointments i.e. if I just need a script. And the gap on longer consults is now cheaper.

Maybe its just unique to my GPs practice, but its like a reward for loyalty and not GP shopping. Works for me. The price for a face to face short consult and telehealth short consult has always been the same anyway - so I prefer to go in.

Even though my GP practice does skin checks i prefer to go to a specialist skin clinic for that and the out of pocket is same as its always been. So for me no downside. YMMV.

 

[tomlee1986]

There is no downside to My Medicare, register your main GP and you get benefit of no/smaller gap because they get more govt funding for registered patients, but if you need to go somewhere else you still get the usual rebate.

Actually I got that request when i saw my GP recently for my flu shots - and they said it wont impact the service i receive